UPS contributions mandatory during probation, optional during suspension

Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare Office Memorandums dated October 27, 2026, clarify Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) contributions for central government employees under the Central Civil Services (Implementation of Unified Pension Scheme under the National Pension System) Rules, 2025.

Rule 6(6) requires UPS contributions during probation. Under Rule 6(2), employees may choose whether to contribute during suspension. Government contributions to the employee's UPS corpus are made only if the employee contributes; the amount is based on emoluments that take subsistence allowance into account. If suspension is later treated as duty or leave with leave salary, contributions are recalculated on the emoluments the employee is entitled to. Any shortfall is credited to the individual corpus using the applicable NAV and units on the last working day of the month of adjustment.

Under Rules 6(3) and 7(2), neither employee nor government contributions are due for absence from duty when the employee is not entitled to pay or leave salary, subject to Rule 7(1). Rule 8(1) allows restoration of UPS investment units that would have been credited on time if contributions were delayed for reasons not attributable to the subscriber. Under Rule 27, retirement benefits are processed by the borrowing department's head of office for employees retiring on deputation to another central government department. For deputation to a state government or foreign service, responsibility lies with the head of office or cadre authority that sanctioned the deputation.